


warm wishes granted

by marvellingyou (tourmalinex)



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Stress Baking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-26
Updated: 2019-12-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:15:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21965542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tourmalinex/pseuds/marvellingyou
Summary: Life wasn’t going to be smooth sailing. But as long as they had each other, it was going to be good.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Comments: 3
Kudos: 47
Collections: Stucky Secret Santa 2019





	warm wishes granted

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Meatball42](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meatball42/gifts).



Cinnamon. Nutmeg. Ginger.

Warm spices tickled Steve’s nose, bringing him out of peaceful sleep. He stretched out, yawning as his body relaxed. But as he reached out, hand searching for his husband, Steve frowned at the cold vacancy next to him. After hearing the clattering pans and the  _ ding _ of a timer, Steve figured Bucky was in the kitchen. Despite wanting to stay in the comfort of their bed, the blonde willed himself to get up. 

Their apartment was a cozy two-bedroom with soft, blue walls and light wooden floors. Bucky bought the place after his tour, and after gaining the courage to ask Steve out on a date, the two were stuck together ever since. Within a year and a half of dating, Steve left the apartment he shared with his friends, Sam and Scott, to live with Bucky. For the next two years, they lived side by side, through thick and thin, through turbulence and calm. And now, they were settled in their five years of being together, with the most recent year bound by marriage. 

Once he got the kitchen, Steve was greeted with containers upon containers of cookies. Chocolate chip. Thumbprint. Oatmeal raisin. Snickerdoodles. At first, Steve didn’t think Bucky knew he was awake until the brunette turned his head, their eyes meeting briefly. Steve noted the bags under his husband’s eyes and the dark circles that formed. 

“Mornin’ sunshine,” Bucky said, attention returning to the mixing bowl. 

“Morning, boo bear.” Steve walked up behind Bucky and wrapped his arms around his waist. He rested his chin on Bucky’s shoulder, nuzzling against him. “How long have you been up?”

Bucky shrugged. “Three hours? Maybe four?”

Steve’s mouth twisted as he let out a groan of disappointment. He understood the level of stress they were under. After a long discussion, both of them expressed the desire to be parents. They researched, weighed their options, tried different agencies. Eventually, they found an agency that respected them as a couple and agreed to do a background check and home study. After passing, they created a video profile for potential birth mothers to view. 

Now, all they had to do was wait, and that was the hardest part.

For weeks, Bucky let out his stress in various activities. For a while, he made his own jam and pickles. Then, he knitted scarves, hats, mittens and even bowties. While he enjoyed baking before, Bucky went into overdrive the past few days. He made bread, pies and now, cookies. As much as Steve and Bucky enjoyed sweets, it was getting to be a bit much.

“Honey, go back to bed. I can keep an eye on those cookies for you.”

Bucky snorted. “And risk you burning them? These are for Nat’s holiday party tomorrow.”

Steve swatted Bucky’s shoulder playfully. “C’mon, I’m not  _ that _ bad.”

“Yeah, tell that to last month’s pot roast.” Steve almost opened his mouth to argue, but bit down on his tongue. To his embarrassment, he remembered that night well. Both the meat and the vegetables were stuck to the blackened pan. After a few hours of trying to pry the once edible food off the pan, they opted to order delivery.

“Besides,” Bucky continued. “I have a system worked out.”

“Fine, I’ll let you do your thing.” Steve planted more kisses against Bucky’s cheek for good measure. “How ‘bout I make us some coffee? I’ll put in as much sugar as you want.”

“Please.”

Steve got to it, brewing a pot of coffee for both of them. After fixing up a mug for Bucky, Steve got to doing chores around the apartment. He went through their clothes, sorting them out for laundry. Then, he washed up some of the bowls and measuring cups Bucky used, making sure they were ready to be used again if Bucky wanted to make another batch of cookies. He vacuumed, took out the garbage and finally changed the lightbulb that had been bothering him for the past two days. 

When all the chores were done, Steve sat down on the couch, sketchbook and pencil pouch in hand. But just as he was ready to start sketching Bucky in the kitchen, Steve’s phone rang. He didn’t recognize the number, but noticed that it was a New York area code and answered.

“Hello?”

“Good morning,” a woman said. “May I please speak to Steve Barnes?”

“Yes, this is he.”

“Oh, good! My name is Marissa, and I’m from the adoption agency.”

Steve’s heart skipped a beat. He looked over towards Bucky, whose eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Steve motioned for him to come over and once Bucky was next to him, Steve put the call on speaker. 

“Hello, Marissa.”

“I’m calling update you on your case. I’m happy to let you know that after looking at your profile, a mother is interested in meeting with you and your husband to discuss the possibility of adoption.”

Steve’s hands trembled and if he wasn’t sitting down, he was sure that his phone would have hit the floor. Tears were stinging with tears as he swallowed thickly. He heard Bucky’s breathing hitch as he covered his mouth.

“That’s… that’s great!” 

“We’ll be meeting here at our office after the new year. I’m looking at our schedule and we have an opening on the first Monday of January. The mother expressed that she preferred to meet in the early afternoon. Would that work for the both of you?”

“Yes, that works well for us.”

“Alright, let’s see… aha! We have one o’clock on that day. Would you be able to come in then?”

Steve looked to Bucky for confirmation. Bucky nodded vigorously, barely able to contain his excitement.

“One o’clock on the first Monday of January,” Steve repeated. “We’ll be there.”

“Okay! We’ll see you then! Happy holidays.”

“Happy holidays.”

Once Steve hung up, Bucky pulled him into a tight hug, nearly bringing them both down to the floor. All the pent up anxiety they kept was let out as laughter and kisses.

“Someone wants to meet us!” Bucky kissed the top of Steve’s head. “Someone actually wants to meet us!”

“I told you we’d be fine,” Steve said, bringing a hand to Bucky’s face, cupping his cheek. “But let’s keep this between us for now?”

Bucky nodded. “Yeah. I don’t wanna tell anyone until it’s a for sure thing.”

“I love you, Buck.”

“Love you, too.”

They stayed on the couch, still reeling from the news, only moving once the timer went off.

* * *

Steve held the door open for Bucky, who cradled their baby with all the care in the world. The moment they met Hana, a young woman who knew she wasn’t ready to be a mother, the three of them got along well. Despite that, Hana took her time, looking at other couples before deciding on Steve and Bucky. They all agree on a closed adoption, with Hana being confident that Steve and Bucky would make wonderful parents. 

“She’s so beautiful, Stevie,” Bucky whispered as they stepped into the elevator. “I don’t ever wanna let her go.”

“You’re gonna have to,” Steve said, smiling. “You can’t keep her all to yourself.”

“I know.” Gently, Bucky kissed their daughter’s forehead. “But I’ll hold her for as long as I can.”

Once they got to their floor, Steve went in front of Bucky so that he could open their apartment door. He brought the key to the lock as silently as possible, hoping that the baby wouldn’t stir awake.

To their surprise, they were greeted by their friends, all who waved quietly, and a banner that read, “Welcome Home, Baby.”

“Congratulations,” everyone whispered, once they confirmed that yes, the baby was still asleep.

“Aw, thanks you guys,” Bucky said as Steve closed the door behind them.

“What? You thought we’d pass up the chance of welcoming the first baby in our friend group,” Tony asked, almost offended. “If you guys aren’t gonna spoil the kid, I sure as hell will.”

“In that case,” Clint interjected. “You’re more than welcome to spoil my kid after they’re born. Laura can’t wait to get the baby outta her.”

“All in good time,” Tony said reassuringly.

“So tell us,” Natasha began. “Boy or girl?”

“Gender’s a social construct,” Steve said with a toothy grin. “But, we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Barnes.”

“Hey, Sarah,” Sam said. “If your parents are ever givin’ you a hard time, you can always come to good ol’ Uncle Sam.”

Tony snorted. “Or, you can come see Uncle Tony. I’ll give you a bunch of gadgets to play with.”

“Hey, let our girl grow up first.” Bucky bought a hand to Sarah’s face, lighting tracing her cheeks. “But for now, I want her to stay like this forever.”

“Well, whatever happens,” Natasha said. “We’ll be here for you guys.”

Steve pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Y’think you could get a picture of the three of us?”

“Of course.”

Steve wrapped an arm around Bucky’s waist as his husband gave him a peck on the cheek. Life wasn’t going to be smooth sailing. But as long as they had each other, it was going to be good.


End file.
